Rizalyn (Reese) Reyes first met Ellinor in real life at a small ‘tweetup’ event where red velvet pancakes were served and laughter was plentiful. And although she didn’t have jewellery on her mind at the time, she followed Ellinor’s work through Facebook and Instagram, as well as engaging with her often on Twitter.
It was that sense of familiarity and online friendship—and seeing multiple friends and acquaintances sport their EVStenroos original—that spurred Reese to finally make the call when the time came to update her wedding jewellery.
Twelve years into marriage, Reese’s wedding and engagement rings were starting to show their age; the mass produced 18k white gold rings were rhodium plated and it wore off constantly, requiring re-plating every 18 months. The setting of the smaller stones also began to weaken with time, which caused them to loosen.
She wanted to keep all of her original stones and was also looking for something unique, modern and more true to her style. She didn’t know exactly what she wanted, only what she didn’t. And even with those sparse details, she was confident Ellinor would create something perfectly for her.
Before
“I reached out to Ellinor less than two weeks before the pandemic caused a lockdown all over the world,” explains Reese. “And although we met for coffee only once and worked back and forth on the design through only email, it was very much a fun, friendly and collaborative experience. Ellinor took all my random ideas and photo inspiration, listened to stories about my everyday life and paid close attention to my style—all of which resulted in rings more beautiful, and more me, than I ever could have imagined. They are absolutely stunning.”
Being able to create the perfect custom designed piece of jewellery specifically for a client always goes closely hand in hand with learning to know the wearer; discovering how the owner wants to wear their jewellery, how it should feel to become a natural part of their life. With these stories EVStenroos shares the process from her perspective, as an insight into the relationships that forms between the designer maker and the wearer.
“It was an absolute joy to work with Reese,” says Ellinor. “Not only did it feel like a catch-up with a friend every time we emailed or met, but her communication style was also incredibly fun, clear and comfortable to work with. I loved creating this new beautiful 18k yellow gold engagement and wedding ring set for her. Despite it being a classic ring set, meant for everyday wear, it is fun and happy, and *so much more* her! I believe it represents her better and adds a warmth that is very reflective of her as a person.”
Ellinor and Reese used the existing diamonds from her original set and even though they are now mounted into yellow gold, they look so much brighter than they did in the mass-manufactured white gold setting.
“Knowing Reese and getting to spend time with her before we started the design process was incredibly valuable for me as the designer,” Ellinor explains, “and I feel like you can see the infectious positive energy that she brings, when you look at her rings. Add her bright nails to the photo and it just makes me smile!”
